Frankel’s that good and the acceleration he shows at the two furlong mark is enough to get a petrolhead going let alone us horse-lovers.
But don’t stop watching when Frankel reaches the winning post. The next few seconds see jockey Tom Quealy’s increasingly concerned attempts to stop the horse! There’s a chute at the end of the Goodwood straight which is pretty tight and few horse go down there. You can see Canford Cliffs and others pulling up exhausted well before the chute is reached but Frankel just keeps on dancing down the chute and it’s all Quealy can do to stop him riding off to Chichester!
Such is the superiority of the horse – not another Arkle– the one and only Frankel.
Frankel may never repeat what he did on Wednesday 27th June 2011 between 3.10 and 3.12 but for those two minutes of gorgeous horsey brutality (brilliantly shot and commentated on by Channel Four) we should always be grateful.
Thanks to Khalid Abdullah for agreeing to race him next year and thanks to Henry Cecil who carries the affection of a racing nation on his shoulders today.
BRAVO FRANKEL – THE WONDERHORSE
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